Automatic grain-scale



(No Model.)

H. L EARLE. v AUTOMATIC GRAINSGALB. No. 369,698. PatentedSept. 13, 1887.

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WITNESSES INVEN R W ,4 MN

I! TTDR NE Y UNITED STATES PATENT; OFFICE.

HARRY L. EARLE, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

AUTOMATIC GRAIN-SCALE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 369,698, dated September 13, 1887.

Application filed January 3, 1887. Serial No. 223,138. (No model.)

T 0 a whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HARRY L. EARLE, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of Minneapolis, county of Henncpin, State of Minnesota, have invented a certain new and useful Automatic Grain \Veigher and Bagger, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

My invention is designed more particularly for use in connection with thrashingmachines, and has for its object automatically to weigh the grain as it comes from the separator and deliver it into bags or other receptacles. It is also widely applicable elsewhereas in elevators, shipping-warehouses, mills, Sec-wherever rapid weighing and bagging of the grain, as itconies from conveyers, (whether from bins or other sources of supply,) is desirable.

It consists of the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and hereinafter fully described, and particularly claimed.

In the drawings, likeletters referring to like parts throughout, Figure l is an end view with the counter-balance removed. Fig. 2 is a. frontclevation. Fig. 3 is a section on the line X X of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a section on the line Y Y of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a central longitudinal section of the main delivery-spout and its branches. Fig. 6 is a detail of part of the tallying and registering mechanism.

A is part of the separator.

13 G D is asectional grain'delivery spout for receiving the grain from the elevator of the separator and discharging it into the receptacles which weigh it and bag it. The section 0 of the deliveryspout B ODincloses the ends of the sections B and D, and telescopes on one or the other section, in order to make the delivery-spout adjustable in length, according to the requirements of bagging grain on wagons or on the ground. The end section, D, is divided into two branches, d d, as shown in Fig. 5, one for each of the two weighing receptacles or hoppers.

E is an inverted box-shaped cap or hood placed with its open mouth downward, and serving as a covering and a support for the ends of the delivery-spout and the weighing mechanism. It is provided with a longitudinal opening or cut-away part along the upper part of one side,just below the top of the same. Through this opening the branches d d of delivery-spout D enter the hood and terminate near the center of the same, and are supported in part by the side of the hood. The hood E is also provided with a dividing crossbar, 0, across the shorter diameter of its mouth, for the purpose of a brace and supporting part of the weighing mechanism.

F is a ground-brace, of which there may be two, three, or four, as required, pivotally attached at one end to suitable points on the outside of the hood E, and having their-other extremities on the ground. to hold the hood and its attached mechanism at any desired point above theground free and independent of the separator-frame.

G is an additional brace provided with a longitudinal slot, 9, at one end, and is pivotally attached at one end to the hood E and at the other to the separator-frame by setscrew g,working through the slot 9. This serves as a guide and stay when the hood and weighers are being lowered and in position for bagging the grain on the ground instead of in wagons.

H H are a pair of receptacles or hoppers for receiving the grain from the deliveryspouts, weighing the same, and delivering it into bags. Each hopper is composed of an upper section, it h, square or cylindrical in shape, and a lower section,j j, in shape like an inverted truncated cone or pyramid, and a smaller cylindrical section, t i, and is provided with a hinged valve, K K, intermediate the sectionsjandt' and i, respectively, opening downward.

L L are pendent brackets rigidly attached to the opposite ends of the hood E.

M M are levers fulcrumed between their longitudinal centers and one end to the brackets L L, respectively. The ends of these levers nearest the fulcra are pivotally attached to the hoppers H and H, respectively, and their longer ends are provided with adjustable eounter-weightsNN,which may be securedin any desired position by the set-screws n at. These counterweighted levers serve to hold the hoppers in proper position and to weigh the grain. By adjusting the weights or varying-their mass the hoppers may be lowered at a greater or less weight of grain.

P l are bell-crank levers with arms of unequal length. These are pivotally attached at their elbows to the opposing surfaces of sec- Thcse braces serve tionsjj of the hoppers at the pointspp,with their longer arms pending downward. Links R R pivotally connect the shorter arms of the levers P P with the crossbar 6. Links S S connect the longer arms of levers P l? with the under side of the valves K K, said links S S working through vertical slots in the sec tions '2' t" of-the hoppers. This mechanism serves to quickly close the valves K K when the hoppers are being raised to receive the grain and to open them when the hoppers are lowered.

Tis a tiltinglatch orlock pivotally attached at its longitudinal center to the upper surface of the cross-bar 6 intermediate the two hoppers. It is of a length just sufficient to reach from over the edge of one hopper when that hopper is in its lowest position to and against the side of the other hopper when that hopper is in its highest position. It serves to hold the emptying or empty hopper down until the filling hopper is full and starts to lower.

U are pairs of levers pivotally attached to the sides of the branches cl (1 of the deliveryspout D, near the mouths of the same. The point of pivotal attachment or the fulcrums of these levers is between their centers and one end. The longer ends of the levers are provided with longitudinal slots. Sliding valves or cut-offs V V are attached to the longer arms oftheselevers U by set-screws working through the slots in the levers.

WV V are pairs of links pivotally attached at one end to the shorter arms of the levers U and at their other ends to the hoppers H and H, respectively.

The valves V V slide in grooves in the sides of the branches (1 d. This mechanism is to give a quick cutoff to the grain-delivering branch the instant the scale is turned by the requisite weight of grain in the filling hopper and simultaneously to withdraw the valve and open the outlet of the other branch, allowing the grain to pass into the other hopper.

Z is a tilting valve within the delivery-spout D, pivotall y attached at the point where the branches d d diverge. A lever, a, is rigidly attached at its central point to the base of the tilting valve Z. Attached pivotally to the extremes of this lever a are links I) I), which at their other ends are attached to the hoppers H H, respectively. This will open and close the branches as required, and is designed either as a re-enforoing cutoff, to be used together with the valve V, or as a substitute for the valves V V.

A tallying or registering mechanism is at tached to the hood E, as shown in Fig. 2, and is operated bya train of gear from a ratchet-wheel. This ratchet-wheel 8 is operated by a compound pawl-lever connected with one of the hoppers. This pawl-lever is composed of the double bellcrank lever 1 2 3 and the pawls eland 5, as shown in Fig. 6. It is pivoted at the point 6 to the hood E. To the extremity of the part 1 is pivotally attached a link, 7, which at its other end is attached to one of the hoppers,

as to H in Fig. 1. The pawls at and 5 both work in the teeth of the ratchet-wheel 8 and move it in the same direction. anism the movements of the one hopper are made to register the measures of grain received and discharged by both. hen the hopper H goes down, the ratehet-wheel and connected register is moved forward by pawl 4. WVhen the hopper moves upward, the ratchet-wheel is carried forward by pawl 5; and, as the hopper H moves upward every time the hopper H moves downward, the quantities weighed and discharged are exactly tallied from the one hopper.

Although, as hereinbefore stated, the two forms of cut-off valves to the delivery-spout D may either of them. be used alone, I prefer to use both together, because their eo-operation is essential to the best working of the machine. There are objections and defects to either form alone which are entirely overcome by using the two together. To make a good automatic weigher, the cut-oft must be instantaneous.

It the valve Z be used alone, the grain intermediate the valve and the mouth of d, for example, will go into the hopper H after the desired weight has been reached, and there will be that much overweight of grain.

If the valves V V be used alone, and the valve V, say, be closed, while the hopper H is emptying, the branch (1 will be filled with grain; hence, when the hopper has started to rise and return to its filling position,the valve V will start to open before the valve K is entirely closed,and a little grain will fall through without being weighed. \Vith the two valves together, in co-operation, both these defects are overcome. scarcely any grain will accumulate in either branch-say d-while its hopper H is being emptied. Hence, on rising to its filling position, no grain can pass out of (Z until the valve is entirely open and the valve K is entirely closed.

The operation of my apparatus is clear from the description already given.

All the parts are correlated and cooperate together in such a way that when one hopper is receiving the grain the other is emptying it into a bag or other receptaele,and the reverse, and the movements of the hoppers open and close the cut-off valves to the delivery-spouts; also, the outlet-valves of the hoppers, as required, and tally the quantities through the registering mechanism.

Suppose the hoppers to be in the positions shown in Fig. a, wherein H is being filled, then all the other parts will be as shown in the drawings. Grain will pass freely through (1 into H until the counter-weight is balanced. Then H will start to lower, and instantly the Valve V, by a very quick movement, will start to rise, shutting off the grain,the valve Z will be thrown to the other side, the catch T will be reversed, freeing hopper H, hopper H will start to rise, the valve K will be closed by a quick movement,the valve V will be opened,

By this meclr ICC and valve K will start to open. When Hgets full, the corresponding movements will take place in a reverse order. My weigher and bagger is therefore entirely automatic and is perfectly accurate.

Particularly I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, in this v respectively, counter-weights NN, bell-crank levers P P. attached at p 1), links S S and R R, levers U, fulcrumed to branches d d and attached by slot and set-screw to the valves V V, links 7 W, attached at one end to the levers U and at the other to the hoppers H H, and the tilting lock '1, all substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. In an automatic weigher of the class described, the tilting latch or lock T, pivoted at its longitudinal center to the cross-bar e, between the hoppers H H, with, one end resting over the edge of the emptying hopper and the other end wedged against the upper side of the other hopper, whereby theemptying hopper is locked down until the filling hopper is full.

3. In an automatic grain weigher and bagger of the class described, the bell-crank lever P, provided with longer and shorter arms and pivotally attached to the hopper H at point 1), link S, working through a slot in the section iof hopper H, connecting the longer arm of lever P with the valve K, and thelink R, connecting the shorter arm of P with c, a fixed part of the support, substantially as and for the purpose described.

4. In an automatic grain weigher and bagger, in combination, the lever U, fulcrumed on the delivery-spout D and connected by slot and set-screw with the valve V, and the link W, connected at one end to the shorter arm of the lever U and at the other to the hopper H, whereby the cut-off valve V is operated from the motion of the hopper H, as described.

5. In an automatic weigher and bagger, in combination, delivery-spout D, provided with the branches d d, valve Z, pivoted inside D at the diverging point of (l d, the lever a, rigidly attached at its central point to the valve Z, and the links I) 12, connected to the extremities of a and to the hoppers H H, respectively, the valves V V, the leversU attached by slot and set-screw to the valves V V, respectively, and thelinksWW, attached to said levers U and to the hoppers H H, respectively, whereby the two sets of valves re-enforce each other and accurate weighing is secured.

6. In combination, as a means of supporting a grain weigher and bagger, an inverted-boxshaped cap or hood partly inclosing said weigher and bagger and ground-braces pivotally connected to said cap, whereby said weigher and bagger may be adjusted and supported at diiferent distances from the ground.

7. In combination, hood or cap E, pivoted ground-braces F, adjustable grain-delivery spout B O D, and the guide and stay brace G, pivotally connected to the cap E and by slot and set screw 9 to the separator-frame A, whereby an adjustable support is provided for the weigher and bagger, which is free and independent of the separator and is unaffected by the movements of the same.

HARRY L. EARLE.

In presence of EMMA F. ELMORE, "JAS. F. WILLIAMsoN. 

